17th July 2025
Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
15th July 2025
International Day of Women in Diplomacy: UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls visit to Geneva
1st May 2025
The UN Commission on the Status of Women: My first visit as UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls
2nd September 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Gibraltar – The Principle of Self-determination
Just before Christmas 2001 I was asked to undertake a special diplomatic mission. The then UK government wanted to explore the possibility of an agreement to share sovereignty with Spain over Gibraltar. Gibraltar has been British for precisely three centuries, since 1713 when Spain ceded Gibraltar to the UK as part of the Treaty of Utrecht […]
Read more on Gibraltar – The Principle of Self-determination | Reply (1)
1st September 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Australia votes
Australia goes to the polls on 7 September. The key battleground is the sprawling suburbs of West Sydney, which contain 10% of Australia’s population and a number of marginal seats. I spent Saturday there to get a feel for the campaign on the ground. You quickly pick up the electoral buzz from the campaign posters […]
30th August 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
Changes of UK Travel Advice
As you may have seen from the media and our digital comms, the UK has changed its travel advice for Lebanon. We are now advising against all but essential travel to Lebanon. For Brits intending to travel to Lebanon, this means that you need to assess whether your trip really is essential. For Brits already […]
30th August 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The secret to getting a visa
Many people raise visa issues with me. They think I have a conjurer’s wand and can magic one up if they can only convince me of their case. Actually there is almost nothing I can do to assist even if I wished to do so. These days we do not even issue visas from the […]
29th August 2013 USA
Wounded Warriors bring British inventor’s dreams to life
It is rare to witness the moment when an inventor sees his dreams realised; the culmination of years of testing, adapting and perfecting inventions suddenly paying off. I had the pleasure of witnessing one of those extraordinary moments while attending the 33rd National Veterans Wheelchair Games last month in Tampa, Florida. When I visited Tampa […]
Read more on Wounded Warriors bring British inventor’s dreams to life | Reply (1)
28th August 2013 Harare, Zimbabwe
Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, visits the Helmand PRT
Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, flew in to Lashkar Gah on 27 August to see for himself the progress which international forces and the Afghan authorities have made in bringing security, stability and prosperity to Helmand. As holder of the British Government purse-strings it’s important that he satisfies himself with the impact the […]
Read more on Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, visits the Helmand PRT | Reply
28th August 2013 USA
Dr King’s British Legacy
Today I will have the honour of representing the UK government on the fiftieth anniversary of Dr Martin Luther King Jr’s historic “I have a dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial. I’ve represented my country at many big events in my 20-year diplomatic career, from G8 and UN Summits to the State of the Union […]
28th August 2013 Toronto, Canada
Canadian science news: 19-25 August 2013
[View the story ” Canadian science news: 19-25 August 2013″ on Storify]
Read more on Canadian science news: 19-25 August 2013 | Reply
28th August 2013 Vancouver, Canada
To Write or Not to Write
Never write about Shakespeare. It’s like inviting friends to watch you skate when the Sedins are on the ice. In fact, given the very existence of Hamlet and King Lear, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Twelfth Night – to write or not to write, at all, about anything, should be the question. . .
28th August 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
A week in an Aboriginal community
Indigenous Australians have been on this continent for around 40,000 years. So it was a great privilege to spend 5 days in the Aboriginal community of Hopevale, in Cape York in the far north of Queensland. My principal impression was the warmth of the people I met. Each evening a different family invited me to […]